Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1887-10-02
Green and Lieutenant Davis. The latter

| How many men IN the company
'Fifty-eight, sir.
'Who are your tent mates"
oscar Jackson, Thomas Parker and
John PridgeOn."
"Well, Captain ?" queried the General,
as he turned to Captain Morton.
The Captain was clean beat. He Wa
dead sure that no such man belonged tC
his company, and yet the suspect had an
swered every question as straight as q
string.
''I'll stake my life that never saw this
man before, the Captain finally answered,
''and / know every man in my company
by name"
| The spy was ordered to strip his shirt,
and for the first time his GOODNESS seemed
to desert him. He reproached the captain
for permitting this indignity, but slowly
disrobed. In one OF his boot legs was a
pocket, and in this pocket we found q
paper bearing figures as follows:
A-....ld...... q
| H.. 1900
! c.. ......l, 600
There were four or five sets of these
memoranda, running from one to I'D. "
When asked to explain the meaning OF
them, he said they were some old examples
in algebra he had been working out with
the boys. In a few minutes we were sat
isfied that the paper read: Artillery in
first division % pieces" The ''I' stood
for infantry, and the ''C' for cavalry.
We were satisfied, and yet we were not,
for as soon as we made it out the way
have given it to you, Swift said:
General, Captain Morton does not seem
to be good hand to remember faces. viii
you please send for the orderly sergeant
and my tent mates? If can't show by
them that have been with Company G
four months you can order me hung as a
spy"
The cool proposition staggered the gen.
eral. Had we discovered the paper in the
mans pocket instead of his boots he would
have been allowed to walk off. That dis
covery looked suspicious, and he was or
dered back to the guardhouse and the per-
sons sent for. Two hours later he was con-
fronted with the orderly sergeant.
Sergeant, do you know this man."
asked the general.
"No, sir"
isn't he member of your company"
"No, sir"
You are dead sure of this?'
81 am, sir"
Swift actually grinned as if it were
good joke, and said:
perhaps | have changed skins with
somebody since | came out of camp this
morning. Sergeant White, your given
name is Thomas You came from Chicago.
You have been twice wounded. Your
father was down to see you last week. You
get love letters from your girl in Galesburg.
You are - years old. You have brother
Ben in Company F.. Hear me call the roll
of our company: Albright, Allison, An
drews, Arkwright, Bement, Beamer, Bost-
wick. Carter, CorliSS, Collins, Costigan,
CummerfOrd-"
And the man ratified off forty or fifty
names as fast as he could speak, and he
got them all correct, too. The Sergeant
looked from his Captain TO the prisoner,
aud then pinched himself to see if hefEas
awake or asleep. :nr
"I-I never saw him before" he finally
stammered, "but he must belong to the
company"
Eyes, he certainly must" added the
Captain.
"Well, take him back to camp with You,
Sergeant" observed the General. Hold
on, though; didn't we send for his tent
mateS?"
They are here, SIR"
"Well, We'll see if they recognize him?'
The three men were brought in, and in
side of five minutes Swift was a doomed
man. He had come into camp four or five
days previous, claiming to be looking for
friend, and had brihed the boys to let him
into the tent. He made his excursions
through the division from this point. He
must have been a man with a wonderful
memory, and he had gained oceans of in
formation without seeming to pump any
body. He tried to brave it out against
the three men, but other members Of the
company weIe sent for, and his nerve at
last gave way. A court martial was con-
vened, and four days after his capture
Swift was hanged While he died game,
and would admit nothing, it was satisfac-
torily settled that he came from JohnsOn's
army, and that he was old in the business.
was at the foot of the gallows az he
mounted it, and when the moose was put
over his head l heard him say:
Gentlemen, it's a ID fine morning to
start on such a journey as mine J"